Having some free time
by aurelie.hugot
Summary: Joseph has a free Sunday afternoon and wants to spend it with Clarisse. It's a small oneshot...


_Hi everyone! This is my first fanfiction (so please don't kill me) and it's my first piece in English. I hope you enjoy it nevertheless! Aurélie_

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It was Sunday and Joseph had one of his rare days off. Normally, he even worked in his free time, but for today he had decided to ignore the pile of sheets on his desk.

His decision was underlined when he gazed outside of his window; the sun was shining brilliantly and seemed to invite him into the garden where he could read a book; a thing he had not done for weeks although he loved reading. He had very rarely time off because normally, he even worked in his free time, a thing he enjoyed, too. After all, he was a perfectionist and that took plenty of free time from him, he knew that for sure but nevertheless loved his job as head of security.

He left his office and made his way to the library. There were thousands of books, classics and modern bestseller; the Queen also was a passionate reader and she made sure that there was a huge variety of books in the palace. Yes, Clarisse loved books, but she had as little time as he had for reading, maybe even less. He smiled at the thought of her; it had been two weeks since they had returned from San Francisco where one dance had changed their friendship into something more.

'What is she doing now', he wondered at the thought about his Queen. Suddenly he wanted to see her badly, only to watch her and talk to her, nothing more. 'She has to be in her office', he thought to himself and therefore skipped his plans previously made and walked to her office. Joseph was sure that she was working there, like she did almost every Sunday. He knocked softly at the door and entered without permission; although it was not very polite, he knew that sometimes she was so absorbed in her work that she did not notice anything or anyone. Joseph peeked through the door, but the office was empty. That was odd because normally she used every opportunity to sit behind her desk and to eliminate the never ending stream of paperwork. But today, only a huge pile of sheets was resting on her desk. He grinned to himself. It seemed that Clarisse had abandoned her bad habits and was enjoying some time for herself, too.

He turned around and decided to make his way to the security office where Shades had shift for today. He could tell him where she was at the moment so that Joseph did not have to look for himself. 'It has its advantages to be head of security', he had to admit to himself.

"Shades, how is it going? Is everything alright?" He entered the office and saw Shades sitting in front of the many monitors that surveyed the whole palace.

"Hey boss, everything's all right and you know that; you would be the first to know if there's any trouble."

"Yes, I know that, I'm sorry, Shades", he apologized. "Do you know where her majesty is at the moment? I have to discuss some security matters with her." That was a lie to cover his previous intention, but nobody had to know that he longed for every second he could spend with her.

"She went to the garden two hours ago and is sitting in that remote area with the huge fountain in the centre. Do you want to send some guards, boss?" Shades was now concentrated on the monitors in front of him, but Joseph knew that the grounds were very extensive so that not everything could be monitored with cameras. He had to admit that there was some advantage; he could spend some time with Clarisse without any disturbance.

"No Shades, there is no need for that. I will go to her, that'll be sufficient. We'll see us tomorrow." He patted Shades on the back and left the office again.

The Queen sat on a stone bench in a secluded area in the garden; three sides of huge hedges gave her a little privacy. Joseph stopped in his tracks at the sight that presented itself in front of him. She had discarded her shoes and sat with bare feet cross-legged on the bench, a book in her lap. He had to acknowledge that she still looked as elegantly as she always did and he knew that it was not a façade; the air of grace she had around herself was as natural as breathing, at least for her.

He drew nearer, but she still did not notice him because she was concentrated on the book. Again, Joseph stopped in his tracks, now unsure if he wanted to disturb her rare free time or not, he knew that she had few opportunities to relax.

He chuckled quietly when he was able to observe her with little room between them. She looked beautiful in that casual outfit she wore, consisting of white trousers and a light blue silk blouse and he was sure that this plain outfit had been very expensive; even if it was "simple". Her hair was slightly ruffled, her cheeks had a pretty shade of pink and her brow was furrowed in concentration. The book seemed to be a good one, because she was completely fixated on it.

'Well, it is not necessary to disturb her', he thought to himself and wanted to turn around again to leave and gave her some time for herself.

"Joseph?" He flinched at her sudden address of his name and spun around. She laughed lightly, closed her book and tilted her head to the side. "It's nice to see you here."

"Clarisse", he said und bowed nonchalantly. "I am sorry if I disturbed you, will you forgive me?" She smiled and entangled her legs and then padded next to her.

"There's nothing to forgive, Joseph. Please, sit down. I finished the chapter anyway, so you didn't disturb me", she trailed off but than added, "you never do and I hope you know that." Her voice was gentle and caring and full of emotions.

He did as she had asked him before and sat next to her without loosing eye contact. Her blue eyes sparkled and he noticed that the color of her blouse intensified the color of her eyes.

"How was your day, Joseph, what did you do today?" She asked and started to fidget with the abandoned book. Obviously, she tried to make small talk to hide her uncertainty when they were in private, something he had discovered during the last two weeks. He placed his hand gently on hers and caressed it lightly before he answered.

"I wanted to finish some paperwork of mine, but then I looked out of the window and decided to have a day off. I hoped to meet you in your office but that was deserted so I figured out where you were. I was very disappointed that I had to bribe Shades to tell me your hiding place. I lost my whole paycheck for this month", he joked and earned a soft giggle from Clarisse.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry to hear that!" She tried to sound full of pity but she failed. "Now you have to beg in the kitchen to get something decent to eat." He joined her in her laughter and secretly enjoyed every second of it.

"What have you done so far for today, my Queen? I was shocked when I saw your orphaned desk", he teased and earned another soft giggle from Clarisse.

"You may have realized that I was reading a book before you joined me, Joseph." He reached at the book and took it in his hand. "Well, what were you reading?" He looked at the cover and was amazed. "The chemistry of death", Joseph asked a little dumbfounded and looked again at the cover. "That doesn't sound like a romance novel…" That commentary earned a rich laugh from Clarisse.

"No, as a matter of fact, it is not. It's some kind of a forensic thriller. Oh please, Joseph, don't look at me that way", she said when she saw his astonished face and slapped him playfully on his arm. He somehow recovered from the small shock and put the book aside. "I've never thought you were a morbid person, that's all", he stated and smiled again.

"Everybody has some flaws, even me. That's one of many other", Clarisse told him and smirked.

"Clarisse, come and join me for a small stroll, will you?" Joseph asked, rose from the bench and extended his hand to her.

"I would be delighted", she answered, took hold of his hand and slipped into her shoes again.

Joseph chose the way leading to the rose garden of which he knew it was her favorite spot outside the palace. She recognized the way, too, and he was rewarded with another brilliant smile of hers. He was surprised to see her so happy and relaxed at one day; he loved it when she laughed because of him.

Neither of them wanted to destroy the comfortable silence with speaking, so they walked contentedly through the rose garden with its intoxicating smell. "Joseph?" He stopped in his way and turned to look in her face. "What is it, Clarisse", he questioned when he saw hesitation in her features.

"I wonder if they can see us here. I know that there are many safety precautions, but I'm curious if…" He interrupted her train of thoughts: "…they are able to see us now. Calm down, love, I assure you that nobody can watch us in many spots of the garden." Instead of seeing relief on her face, there was still a puzzled expression. Suddenly, Joseph realized that he had called her with one of the names he longed to call her, but never had the courage to do so because he knew that she still was not accustomed to their relationship so he had decided to take small steps.

"Clarisse, I'm sorry if I offended you but…",he started to apologize but she put her index finger on his lips to stop him.

"No, Joseph, please, don't apologize. I thought it was very…",she trailed off in search for a word,"… sweet." Joseph noticed the blush on her cheeks and the happiness obviously shining in her eyes; he was sure that he wanted to love her for the rest of his life.

He cleared his throat to divert his thoughts and picked up their previous topic: "Well, I can assure you that nobody can watch you from that area. There are too many spots in the garden that cannot be surveyed and…" Again her index finger was laid on his lips and he studied her face in confusion. Clarisse looked deeply in his eyes and whispered: "Then will you please kiss me, Joseph?"

At first he thought it was one of his dreams that haunted him during his sleep, his Clarisse, standing in front of him and asking him to kiss her, but when he saw those beautiful blue eyes, radiating with love, he lowered his lips slowly until they finally met with hers.

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_Soooo... what did you think? Was it ok or a piece of youknowwhat? Please give me some review, without it, I can't write better g!_


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